''Atya gabonensis'' is a species of freshwater

shrimp Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...

from West Africa. Note that accounts of its occurrence in South America are erroneous, and likely another species (

Atya scabra ''Atya scabra'' is a species of freshwater shrimp in the family Atyidae. ''Atya scabra'' can reach a length of about in males, while females are generally smaller, reaching about . It lives on rocky bottoms in rivers connected to the Atlantic Oc ...

). It is an

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nutri ...

filter feeder Filter feeders are a sub-group of suspension feeding animals that feed by straining suspended matter and food particles from water, typically by passing the water over a specialized filtering structure. Some animals that use this method of feedin ...

that uses feather-like claspers to filter particles from the water. It can grow to . It has many common names, including African fan shrimp, African filter shrimp, African giant shrimp, vampire shrimp, blue rhino shrimp, Gabon shrimp, and Cameroon fan shrimp.

Distribution

''Atya gabonensis'' is found in

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

, from

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

to the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

. Accounts of it being found in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

from

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

are a case of mistaken identity.

In aquaria

Despite their predatory-sounding name "Vampire", they are a non-aggressive species that does well in community tanks that have areas to hide during the

molting In biology, moulting (British English), or molting (American English), also known as sloughing, shedding, or in many invertebrates, ecdysis, is the manner in which an animal routinely casts off a part of its body (often, but not always, an outer ...

process. Another requirement is a moderate to strong current where the

can sit and catch food. Either a very well established tank with sufficient plankton, or supplemental feedings of finely ground fish food, spirulina powder, etc. preferably spot-fed. If they begin patrolling the bottom and sifting sand, this is a sign they are not getting enough to eat from filter-feeding and are in danger of starving. A pH of 6.5–7.8 is acceptable as well as temperatures of . As with most invertebrates they are very susceptible to medications used to treat many fish diseases, with

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

being deadly. Also

ammonia Ammonia is an inorganic compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . A stable binary hydride, and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinct pungent smell. Biologically, it is a common nitrogenous was ...

and

nitrite The nitrite polyatomic ion, ion has the chemical formula . Nitrite (mostly sodium nitrite) is widely used throughout chemical and pharmaceutical industries. The nitrite anion is a pervasive intermediate in the nitrogen cycle in nature. The name ...

poisoning are possible. Colouring of this species can vary from a creamy white to an almost rusty brown, and also a deep blue. It is believed that the water conditions will affect colouring and harder water causes the blue morph. These shrimp have been known to change colour several times in the same year.

References

External links

*De Grave, S. & Mantellato, F. 2013
''Atya gabonensis''.
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013. Downloaded on 14 June 2016.
Keeping the African Giant Filter Shrimp (African Fan Shrimp, Vampire Shrimp), ''Atya gabonensis''.
ThatPetPlace {{Taxonbar, from=Q882521 Atyidae Freshwater crustaceans of Africa Freshwater crustaceans of South America Crustaceans described in 1875